The Dogs of Bedlam Farm: An Adventure with Sixteen Sheep, Three Dogs, Two Donkeys, and Me

I was given this book as a Christmas gift by a dear friend and enjoyed every minute of it. It's a heartwarming story of a man and his animals, and some of the lessons he learns from them. As I read the story it was obvious how much the author depends on his animals to meet emotional needs as much as they depend on him for food and shelter. If all animals were cared for and treated with as much respect as this man has for his... Read Full Review

Several years ago, I read a series of novels about the "Suburban Detective." After not seeing one of the books for a while, I began to wonder what happened to the author, Jon Katz. It turned out he had switched to non-fiction, in particular books about his dogs. The Dogs of Bedlam Farm is my first reading of the "new" Katz, and it was an enjoyable one. For those city folk who dream of a nice quiet life on a farm, The Dogs... Read Full Review

Well, if you enjoyed reading A Dog Year, you'll enjoy this book. This time Jon Katz buys a farm. His life has been changed by his border collie dogs, and he buys the farm partly for the dogs and partly for himself. The most important treasures back in the city were his wife, daughter, plus cinemas and Thai restaurants. If you've read any of his books, you know he likes to escape the monotony of city life. Indeed he did... Read Full Review

At first glance, Jon Katz seems to be a man out of his mind. First he buys a border collie that herds garbage trucks and buses in the city- then he spends the next year training this dog, and finally realizing he needs to move out of the city. So, he packs up his bags, says good-bye to his wife and daughter and off he goes with three dogs and along the way collects two donkeys and sixteen sheep. A sane man- maybe not, but... Read Full Review

Looking for a place that would allow his three border collies to do what they do best --- herd sheep --- and allow him to continue their training, Jon Katz heads to West Hebron, a small town an hour northeast of Albany. Here, his new home is an aging farmhouse complete with several decrepit barns, forty-two acres of pasture and woods, a cantankerous ram, fifteen ewes, two donkeys named Carol and Fanny, and a town full of people... Read Full Review